UZBEK WORKSHOP FOR IMPLEMENTING UNSCR 1540 -- A REGIONAL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TASHKENT 000208

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DEPT FOR ISN/CPI TOM WUCHTE
EXBS FOR JEFF HARTSHORN
AND
INL/AAE FOR ANDREW BUHLER
USOSCE FOR ELIZABETH KAUFMAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KNNP AORC OSCE UNSC UZ
SUBJECT: UZBEK WORKSHOP FOR IMPLEMENTING UNSCR 1540 -- A REGIONAL
PERSPECTIVE

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1. (U) Summary: On February 10-11 a workshop on
implementation of the United Nations Security Council
Resolution (UNSCR) 1540 was jointly sponsored in Tashkent
by the Export and Related Border Security (EXBS) program
and the Uzbek Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This cable
addresses broader regional 1540 implementation based on
the ongoing work of the 1540 Committee, our USG approach
to multilateral implementation of UNSCR 1540 through
effective use of regional and intergovernmental
organizations, as well as bilateral discussions at the
workshop with EU, UNODC, OSCE, and 1540 Committee Experts
attending the Uzbekistan Workshop. A more detailed
workshop report will be provided SEPTEL. End summary.

Background
--------------


2. (U) On February 10-11 a UNSCR 1540 workshop was held
in Tashkent with joint sponsorship from EXBS and the
Uzbek Government. We previously supported two 1540
events in this region (they were organized by the
Monterey Center for Nonproliferation Studies but using
funding from the Norwegian government). Those events
stressed awareness raising and we were not able to elicit
follow through on next steps beyond each state announcing
that it conducted a workshop, which at the time was a
realistic outcome. This was our first event for
bilateral training after UNSCR 1810 (through our EXBS
program) which is funding Monterey and there were
several discussions that validated the significance of
our other funding with respect to UN outreach, regional
organizations, and through funding in cooperation with
Sandia National Laboratories.

Implementation a Long-Term Process
--------------


3. (U) As a general view after three workshops in a
region with numerous important borders, we have created
good conditions to complement our approach to regional
cooperation and making better use of the synergies
existent in Vienna through the OSCE, IAEA, and UNODC.
Uzbek officials were receptive to all three organizations
both in the open forum and in private discussions.
Moreover, they demonstrated a good working understanding
in the more programmatic areas (Commerce, Health,
Agriculture, Energy). On the other hand, the MFA
officials largely deferred to the Uzbek delegation in New
York when discussing obligations and saw their role as
monitoring the adherence to reporting requirements. As
with other Central Asian countries, the Uzbeks are
interested in assistance but different ministries want to
see a broader focus than just meeting UN reporting
requirements.


4. (U) There was no disagreement that implementation of
Resolution 1540 (2004) is a long-term and continual
process; there was a continuing need to exchange
experiences on the priority assigned to the issue of
weapons of mass destruction; that concrete challenges
exist with respect to the implementation of the
resolution; and that this issue was accepted as
legitimate work on furthering non-proliferation as long
as it supported overall developmental needs.

A Central Role for OSCE
--------------


5. (SBU) The OSCE Project Coordination Office in Tashkent
appeared receptive to supporting a regional
nonproliferation event in Central Asia dedicated to UNSCR

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1540. On February 10, 1540 Coordinator Tom Wuchte and
poloff met with OSCE Ambassador in Tashkent Istvan
Venczel and his staff to discuss prospects for this type
of activity. Wuchte, citing remarks from the 1540
Committee Chairman at the OSCE in December, noted that
OSCE field missions could play a useful role in raising
awareness of nonproliferation issues by including 1540 as
a mechanism to promote regional follow up. Venczel
proposed preparing a project for next year, but warned
that it is unclear whether the Government of Uzbekistan
will accept this given its limited mandate. However, the
themes being discussed in Vienna on using both the Forum
for Security Cooperation and Permanent Council received
no objection from Venczel or his staff -- albeit they
largely deferred to the OSCE Action Against Terrorism
Unit (ATU) to define policy.


6. (SBU) We noted that the OSCE approach included efforts
to integrate this issue with the United Nations Office of
Drugs and Crime (UNODC),and OSCE field mission officials
advised coordinating with UNODC and Uzbekistans Ministry
of Foreign Affairs on any such regional plans and
submitting a proposal by September given Uzbekistans
upcoming parliamentary elections in December. OSCE
Senior Project Coordinator Caroline Milow said that OSCE
would welcome funding from participating states,
including the United States and Germany, that could
complement this type of approach -- she was particularly
interested in the work of the Financial Action Task Force
(FATF).


7. (U) In a separate meeting on February 10, a UNODC
representative also told us that UNODC is likely to host
a regional event in December in Turkmenistan that focuses
on both counterterrorism and nonproliferation, with UNSCR
1540 one of the central parts. A separate OSCE project
could bring together Central Asian States (for example)
in Tashkent for a more detailed nonproliferation-focused
topic -- such as a legislative drafting exercise.


8. (SBU) Comment: As an outcome from the Monterey (EXBS-
funded) workshop, it was clear that the OSCE Project
Coordinators Office could play an important role in
encouraging Uzbekistan to take additional measures in
implementing UNSCR 1540 in the country (as could other
regional OSCE field offices). These would complement
other United Nations activities in this field. For
example, Uzbekistans legislation relevant to 1540 can be
strengthened through additional engagement including
workshops and roundtables. According to the 1540
Committee report, Uzbekistan is party to none of the
international export control regimes and probably lacks
lists of dual-use items whose exports need to be
licensed, while Article 255 of the Criminal Code makes no
reference to nuclear weapons. Moreover, Uzbekistan could
be encouraged by the OSCE (based on its commitments
agreed with Ministers) to use the 1540 Committees
technical assistance template in order to refine an
implementation plan. End comment.

Recommendations from the Margins
--------------


9. (SBU) The following recommendations were proposed at
the end of the seminar on the margins which could be
implemented in coordination with the 1540 Committee,
OSCE, UNODC, and post:

-- Uzbekistan should now be familiar with the technical
assistance template from the Committee and submit more
detailed information since it had requested training
among other follow on areas.

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-- Many states, for example, have already provided the
1540 Committee with a thorough overview of its existing
assistance programs. In working with states that are
seeking assistance, Uzbekistan could use the 1540
Committee's technical assistance template to help its
state refine its implementation plan.

-- Uzbekistan can set an example by submitting, as
appropriate, a national implementation plan and follow
up as an OSCE participating State on its agreement by
supporting the OSCE 2006 Ministerial decision on UNSCR

1540.

-- Just as we have identified good points of contact on
Small Arms/Light Weapons (SA/LW) issues, we should
encourage states in the OSCE region to do the same with
UNSCR 1540 and to share points of contact with the 1540
Committee, as UNSCR 1810 requests. (Note: When
discussed at the workshop, Uzbekistan did not see the
value of an official coordinating the interagency effort
and simply said its point of contact is in New York
within its Permanent Mission. This is a validation that
the USOSCE suggestion in December for the OSCE to
maintain a list of contacts would be an effective
contribution, and one that would be simple to help
reinforce the work of the Committee and the need for
interagency cooperation on UNSCR 1540. End Note.)

-- Work is underway on preparations for UNSCR 1540
workshops and other events in several regions later in

2009. We should continue to view the OSCE as the leading
regional organization through ongoing cooperation and
seek Uzbekistan's continued cooperation as a member of
the OSCE.

Support for the 1540 Committee Crucial
--------------


10. (SBU) On the margins, Isabella Interlandi, the
Committee Expert in attendance, inquired about whether
the Program of Work could effectively empower her and the
other seven experts to effectively implement the broad
tasks outlined in UNSCR 1810 that extended the Committee
for an additional three years. She expressed her
disappointment that such items as working groups were
meeting resistance, as the Committee structure and lack
of capital involvement impeded their ability to
effectively handle such areas as assistance offers and
requests. (Note: Lack of capital involvement refers to
nonproliferation experts in capitals since the UN
Committee, like many similar multilateral organizations,
is not staffed with functional experts but rather with
general diplomatic representatives who cover a wide
variety of issues. End note.) When informed that we had
not abandoned these ideas as originally proposed by many
of the experts and UN Office of Disarmament Affairs
(ODA),she said the continued support was seen as crucial
to making the comprehensive review meeting for UN Member
States and IGOs planned for the end of 2009 successful.


11. (U) This message was drafted by the visiting USG 1540
Coordinator.
NORLAND

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